Shake Up
by RobertDowneyJrLove
Summary: A routine visit from Pepper unwittingly leads to Tony discovering Obadiah's deceit and shaking up his own company. Obadiah Stane couldn't afford a mistake like this. Set a couple years before Iron Man. This is an AU of one event that could have led up to Obadiah ordering Tony's abduction.


"You could afford to provide Stark Industries with better coffee." Pepper Potts dropped a stack of files on her boss' desk and addressed him again - or rather, the converse clad feet poking out from beneath one of his vintage cars. "And, you could also afford to attend board meetings once in a while. The board members are starting to wonder if you actually know what's going on with your own company."

"Oh, you mean the slick suits that cost me three grand in stock last month?" Her boss' snarky drawl was followed by the scrape of wheels on the floor of his workshop. He emerged from beneath cherry red car in a gray t-shirt and faded jeans, wiping his hands on a rag that may or may not have been white at one point. His shirt was loose with a hole in one sleeve and various grease stains, and his jeans were worn at the knees. "Or," he added waspishly, blowing out a ragged breath. "The same ones that cost me almost ten grand so they could go live it up on vacation."

"So you do know."

"More than I want too, Miss Potts." Tony Stark grinned at his personal assistant. He appraised her stoic, professional stance and sobered slightly, informing her of just what his board members were capable of. "Those morons have cost me more in a month's vacation than I pay them in a year."

"So, fire them." Pepper suggested simply.

He shoved one corner of his rag into his back pocket and swaggered toward her, hips moving provocatively and lips curling into a sardonic grin. He poked her ribs playfully, moving around her to look at the stack of files on his desk. "Unfortunately," he let the file fall open in his hands and looked up at her again. His eyes were incredibly distracting - so soft yet so sharp and so damn brown. "It's not that simple."

"Right." Cough. Sputter. Damn brown eyes. She tapped the stack of files and hoped to avoid stammering this time. "Sign these. I'll be by to get them in the morning, or by the end of next week."

He picked up a pen and dropped down into his chair, eyes scanning the file at a rapid rate. If she wasn't used to her boss being able to read and digest things at such a speed, it might alarm her, but it was commonplace, really. Now, anyway. Oh. Now he was circling things. Okay, that she learned was a bad thing. It usually meant someone would be the recipient of one of Tony Stark's temper tantrums and she had been witness to one. It hadn't been pretty. The intern had nearly wet himself and the board member in charge of the crusade of interns had nearly resigned that week.

Given, it had been humorous, in hindsight. At the time, it had been horrifying to see what power he was truly capable of when he wanted to be. She had left Stark Industries with a newfound respect and not unfounded fear of his capabilities. He was truly terrifying but awe-inspiring when he stepped into the role of CEO.

She had filed that day away as a reminder of just what Tony Stark could do.

"Mister Stark, is something wrong?" She fumbled slightly, wondering if she was about to witness another tantrum.

Tony reached out blindly, grasping the sleeve of her jacket at her wrist and tugging her toward him. He slid his finger under one line on the stock report and spoke sharply; "That's not true. The stock dropped fifteen points, not twenty-five. They're ripping me off."

"Not only that," Pepper pointed to a line a full three paragraphs below that, printed in red ink. "But we're not supposed to own stock in that. There was no contract discussed with that company."

"How much?"

"Roughly?" Pepper looked down at her boss. "Thirty grand."

"I want you to leave these files here. You, go home, relax." Tony instructed her, holding up his hand to pause her protest. "No. I mean it, you work too hard for these slicks. I'm going to Stark Industries myself and sort this out. These falsified reports of where the company's money is being invested will be stopped. I know it's only lunch, but don't worry. I'll make sure you get paid for the rest of the day."

"Thank you, Mister Stark. I'll see you at noon, tomorrow." Pepper smiled cordially.

"Actually, no. I'd prefer if you work from here tomorrow." Tony corrected her casually, closing the file and spinning in his chair to look at her. "After I get done, it's not going to be very friendly and I'd hate for you to be caught in the crossfire. I'll have whatever you need brought here."

"Alright. I'll see you in the morning, Mister Stark."

"See you in the morning, Miss Potts."

* * *

A group of interns, wearing lab-coats and ID badges that made them seem more official than they really were, stared at him a bit googly-eyed and wonderstruck. And, unless he was mistaken, the short brunette of the bunch had a nice ogle of his ass as he passed by. Not that he minded, she was an intern at his company and he was about to piss off her boss, he figured she deserved a few minutes of fun ogling before her boss' snappy attitude got the best of her perky personality.

He powered through Stark Industries, expensive briefcase in hand, files tucked away for review with the man who was responsible for the false documentation. None of the files would be signed with his signature until he saw that changes were made and that no further changes were made without his approval - his own company apparently needed a refresher course of what rights he was entitled to as CEO.

"Stane." Tony addressed him sharply, tapping his shoulder. The man may have been the closest thing he had to a father, but right now he was in no mood for pleasantries or familial conversation. He had business to attend too and it would be done with a scathing tone for everyone involved. When the man decided to redirect his attention from the intern he was speaking too, Tony smiled coldly and nodded his head toward the young man. "Get rid of him and get to my office. Now."

"Tony -"

"Don't Tony me, Obadiah. I'm in no mood." Tony clenched his teeth and started toward his office, spinning on his heel to direct one more caustic remark at the man. "And while you're doing that, I suggest you start thinking of how exactly you plan to explain the disappearance of a hundred thousand dollars from this company. And your explanation better be a damn good one, because if it isn't, I'll see to it that you never see another dime of Stark Industries money."

The subtle widening of glinting eyes assured Tony that he had, indeed, struck a nerve. Satisfied with that, he offered them both a smile and disappeared behind the heavy double doors of his office. It was never his objective to make Obadiah Stane sweat, but that didn't mean, he couldn't get a little enjoyment out of it when he achieved such a feat. He dropped the briefcase on his desk and was shuffling through the files when Obadiah, clearly worried, stepped into his office.

"Tony -"

"Mister Stark." Tony corrected him, pulling files out of his briefcase. "Sit down, Obadiah."

Wiping stress-induced sweat from his bald head, he sat down and crossed his arms over his chest, growing more agitated with every minute that ticked by. Good. Let him sweat it, a bit. He needed to know that Tony meant business, because it had become clear Obadiah no longer took the CEO seriously. He fidgeted and shifted, even in the perfectly comfortable chair. Tony had to admit, it was good to see him squirm. He had been getting a little complacent within Stark Industries and was able to get by with a lot crap just by shoving his position in people's faces.

"You." Tony hissed bitterly, dropping a single folder onto his desk and sinking down into his plush leather office chair. His eyes hardened and he addressed Stane in a direct, but subtly biting manner. "You told me that there were no backdoor dealings happening within my company, Obadiah. And I was stupid enough to believe it."

"There are no backdoor dealings." Obadiah shook his head. "I make sure of it."

"Really?" Tony questioned coldly, flipping open the folder. He turned it on his desk for Obadiah to see. "Because this was brought to me by Pepper. It's a stock report, I'm sure you know what they are. You write them. I was reading it and I realized that you have been ripping me off of thousands of dollars with my signature but not my knowledge." He tapped the piece of paper and shot the man a calculating glare. "This has cost me, what, a hundred grand, maybe two hundred, every other month?"

"Tony, I really don't see what this has to do with backdoor dealings." Obadiah protested in false confusion.

The man was stupidly transparent. Or maybe, just stupid, if he really thought Tony couldn't see what he was doing. He just offered his business partner and supposed friend a calculating smile and stood up to retrieve himself a drink. Okay, Obadiah. Two could play that game. He picked up the bottle of scotch and paused to speak, wanting to make sure Obadiah didn't leave this meeting unaffected, not that he was finished. Not by a long shot. But he wanted to throw him off of his game. "You know, a bottle of scotch is a good investment. If it's the right brand - brand is important. And I would never sign a contract with a brand that wasn't truly worth the investment."

"What's your point, Tony?" Obadiah questioned, gritting his teeth.

Oh. Good. It was getting fun, now. His business partner was on edge and Tony finally felt as if he was getting somewhere. He remained silent, pouring scotch into a tumbler and turning sharply. The tense silence hung in the air and if it wasn't for the fact that Tony was trying to shake up the company a little bit, he might have left it at that.

"What I'm saying, _Obie_," Tony drawled sardonically, staring at him in a way that made Obadiah uncomfortable. "What I'm saying is that you reported we have stock in a company I've never heard of much less signed a contract with."

"I signed the contract with them, myself." Obadiah explained coolly. Too coolly.

"Well," Tony took a sip of his scotch and focused his gaze somewhere behind Obadiah's head. "I guess it should be Stane Industries, instead of Stark industries."

"Tony, I -"

"No." Tony cut him off briskly. "I have a say in where my money goes. If you can't respect that, than I suggest you leave Stark Industries. Correct me if I'm wrong, but your reputation couldn't afford a hit like that."

"I really don't see that, that's necessary." Obadiah objected.

"Then, stop the backdoor dealings. Stop dealing weapons under the table. Stop spending money and reporting false stock information to cover your ass." Tony barked roughly, "I'm sick and tired of being taken advantage of by the likes of you power hungry idiots who think I don't know what I'm doing."

"I never said that!" Obadiah stood up angrily, defensive and ready to attack.

His defense was no match for Tony's offense and the power-hungry businessman was on the losing end of the conversation. "You didn't have too. That's what you think." Tony fixed him with an intense stare, tilting his head. "Isn't it? I'm not stupid, Obie. I know what my own company does. Despite the fact that I only attend board meetings when I'm dragged doesn't mean I'm not informed. Stock only dropped fifteen, not twenty-five points. You're costing me money."

"Perhaps, you should speak to your board members who go on vacation every other month on your dime." Obadiah sneered, looking around. "And, where the hell is Pepper? I think she and I need to have a little chat."

"About what? Her doing the job I hired her to do?" Tony snarled angrily. He drained his glass and set it back down beside the bottle of scotch. He felt quite protective of Pepper and would make sure his business partner understood that. "I sent her home. She'll be working at my house until further notice."

"She's the one that found the stock?"

"No. I did. She's the one that brought me the file." Tony shook his head, "I found the money. I knew something was going on. You were too shady, unwilling to share information with me about my own business. When I got my hands on that report, or whatever the hell it actually is, I knew what you were unwilling to tell me."

"She had no right to bring you that file." Obadiah's hands went to his hips.

In hindsight, he had probably enjoyed the moment a little too much, but quite frankly, he was sick of being used for his money. The fact that Obadiah, a man both he and his father trusted with the inner workings of the company, was the same as all of the other useless free-loaders, hurt him. It was a sick game, Obadiah played. Earning Tony's trust and using it to betray him. But it stopped here.

"She was doing what I asked of her." Tony enunciated slowly, as if he was speaking to a child - oh, the comparisons. He hadn't asked for the file, at all. His partner didn't need to know that, however. "If you have a problem with me seeing this information, then perhaps it's time we part ways."

"Now Tony, don't be hasty."

"I'm not being hasty. Not at all. I'm doing what is in the best interest of my company." Tony spoke clinically; emotionless. "What I'm doing is catching you in a lie. I'm saving myself a lot of pain. You used my trust against me. I will never make the mistake of trusting you again. Ever. From now on, anything that goes through you, comes straight to me for approval."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, Stane." Tony lowered his voice, "And if I catch you using money that isn't yours again, I'll have you out of here within the hour and within that same hour, the whole world will know what you did. You'll take a hit, you can't possibly recover from. Lucky for you, the company can recover from the hits it has taken."

He made his way back to his desk and closed the folder, shoving it back into his briefcase. He'd be calling Pepper later. She would be receiving a detailed account of just what he had done and there would be talk of a substantial pay-raise. Also, he'd be calling contractors to build a home office onto the guest room she used most often. She'd be working from his house, both to ensure his dirty business partner couldn't get rid of her, and to ensure his company's inner workings came through him.

"I'm going home." Tony barked, snapping his briefcase shut. He started for the door, only to turn sharply and issue instructions that brooked no further argument or protest. "Also, I expect Pepper to be paid through the end of the day. I'll write the paycheck myself if I have too. If I find that you docked her pay, you'll be paying her in cash out of your own pocket."

With his final stinging blow delivered, Tony Stark walked out of his office. This would never happen again. He'd make sure of it. From now on, he'd be keeping close watch on his supposed business partner and the money Stark Industries used for investments. And if he could help it, Obadiah Stane would never so much as look at Pepper again. That was something he'd take every precaution necessary to be sure of. He'd keep her well away from the crossfire of Obadiah's corruption being brought to an abrupt end.

It'd be several years and a three month stay in Afghanistan before he ever realized how deep in the company, Obadiah's tentacles of corruption truly extended.

And ending it would be hell.

* * *

**Hi! So...in case you can't tell, I'm back. Sort of. I just finished two little things and thought I'd post them. So yeah, here it is. I'm sick. So I'm not in the mood to go into detail about my inspiration for this piece. And now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go take a shower because I feel disgusting. Leave me some love, Dolls. **

**Love ya, **

**RobertDowneyJrLove**


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